Why good employees leave, and how to hear it sooner

Why people say they leave

The CIPD's Good Work Index 2026 surveyed more than 5,000 UK employees. Of those, 18% said they were likely to quit their job in the next 12 months. Among those who had changed organisations before, the most common reasons for moving were better pay and benefits (29%), better work–life balance (23%) and unhappiness with leadership or senior management (19%).

Pay matters, but it is rarely the whole story. The same research found that “those with higher workloads, poorer workplace relationships or worse managers are much more likely to say they want to quit”. Line management, development opportunities and meaningful work were among the factors most closely linked with an intention to quit.

These are associations, not causes. Each one is something a leader can ask about.

Why the reasons often arrive too late

Gallup's US research asked people who had recently resigned about their last few months in the job. Almost half (45%) said that neither their manager nor another leader had discussed their job satisfaction, performance or future with them in the three months before they left. More than a third (36%) said they had not talked to anyone before deciding to resign.

The pattern is easy to recognise. Leaders often first hear the reasons when someone resigns, and by the time of the exit interview the decision has been made. It can tell you what happened; it rarely gives you a chance to respond.

Five things worth asking about earlier

None of these predicts who will leave. Each is worth understanding before it becomes the reason someone gives on the way out.

• Workload: whether demands feel manageable across the year, not only outside the busy season.
• Line management: whether people get useful feedback and support from the person they report to.
• Development: whether people can see how they will grow, including routes that do not lead to partnership.
• Relationships: how people experience working with colleagues, supervisors and clients.
• Being heard: whether people believe that raising something will lead anywhere

Ask about these in plain words. Read the answers alongside what managers already know.

A theme is a starting point for a conversation, not a verdict on a team. Most of these are also topics in the EHS Check-in question library, including workload, manager support, growth and raising concerns.

Make it easier to say before it’s decided

The CIPD found that a fifth (20%) of UK employees report having no voice channel at all. Only 41% rated their managers as good at seeking employees' views. Fewer rated them as good at responding to suggestions (36%) or at allowing employees to influence final decisions (28%).

Hearing concerns earlier depends on three habits. Ask regularly, so concerns surface before they settle into decisions. Ask the same question each time, so you can see whether something is changing. And tell people who will see their responses, how they will be used and when they will hear back.

In EHS, the same question, “How do you feel about working at [your company]?”, is asked in a quarterly rhythm, so the measure stays consistent over time.

The EHS Method explains how it works. Focused Check-ins can explore a separate question between Cycles. They do not update the headline score.

How EHS can help

Once people have given feedback, write down what you heard and what will happen next. A few lines are enough. They make it clear who will act, and they give you something concrete to report back to the team.

In the EHS quarterly rhythm, the 30-day collection window is followed by 60 days to review findings, act and run Check-ins. A note like this gives that period a clear owner and gives the next Cycle a point of reference.

The organisation still owns the interpretation, decisions and communication. If people later feel better about working there, that change alone does not prove that a particular action caused it.

An exit interview explains a decision. An earlier conversation can still inform one.